FACTS, Not Opinions:
Budget Deficits Projected:
A PMA report, distributed at the District 86 Finance Committee meeting
March 21, 2011, shows a $2.2 million dollar deficit by FY 2016. The red
ink is increasing over time, primarily because staff compensation costs are
increasing by around 4% annually, while revenues are increasing at only
about 1.5%. Unless something changes – and the only options are increased
revenue (read: increased taxes), decreased spending or both – the deficit will
continue to increase.
Academic Performance Down:
District 86 and individual school report cards are easy to find on the Illinois
State Board of Education web-site, http://isbe.net/. From the home page,
follow the Report Cards link at the top, right to a search page. Enter
“Hinsdale” as either the District or School name, and select. Colored bar
charts showing drops from 2008-09 to 2009-10 are found about 4 – 5 pages
into each report.
Special education results are down even more dramatically. Go to
http://webprod.isbe.net/LEAProfile/SearchCriteria1.aspx - search for
Hinsdale and District 86. At pp. 2-3 (navigate at the top of the page, with
arrows) notice the charts showing the gap between SE students (those with
IEPs), and “regular” students widened in one year (2009-10) by nearly 15
points!
Unacceptable Lack of Transparency:
Enter “Hinsdale District 86” in the search feature on the Illinois Policy
Institute home page (http://illinoispolicy.org/), and you should find a link to
the Downers Grove Transparency Project report. District 86 rated an “F” on
transparency – before and after an initial report, and despite “efforts” to
improve. The work of the Illinois Policy Institute is broad, and you may be
interested in exploring the site.